Wednesday, 21 December 2016

The Shrouded Days

As we enter the Winter Holidays, figured its a good a time as any to delve into Alyeska's equivalent known the Shrouded Days. The Shrouded Days are tied to the Midwinters Festival celebrated across the rest of Darmonica, in some respects they are considered to be the local Alyeskan observation of Midwinters.

Also, a reminder that there will be no post next week (28th Dec).

Whatever you celebrate this time of year, Happy Holidays!

The Shrouded Days

The name 'Shrouded Days' is given to what is effectively a polar night in Alyeska, though only northern areas get 'dark' whilst more southern regions tend to get at least a little bit of daylight. They can last anywhere between a few days to a month or more depending on how far north you are.

The beginning of the Shrouded Days is marked by the Exodus, a number of people will leave the north to winter with relatives who live further south. Those that stay typically move into the biggest building in their settlement where heating fuel and rations had been stockpiled in the weeks leading up to the Shrouded Days. Midwinters is marked as the halfway point during this period of darkness, typically involving present giving and a big meal to pick up spirits. The first sunrise is known as Dawnfest, a celebration is held to herald the end of the Shrouded Days and to welcome the new year.

However the Shrouded Days isn't without its dangers, particularly for more northern settlements. Outlaws can take advantage of the near-deserted ghost towns, either as a place to hideout the winter or to pull of a heist when theres very few people around. To this end the Royal Alyeskan Air Police usually deploys an officer or two to help keep settlements safe in addition to the townsfolk organising a militia of a sorts to regularly check each building in the settlement. That said its not unheard of for some settlements to be found abandoned come Dawnfest...